Electrically actuated toy space station having lamp means



July 12, 1966 R. A. WOLFE 3,260,017

ELECTRICALLY ACTUATED TOY SPACE STATION HAVING LAMP MEANS Filed April 17, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTO 955,974 0M7? ATT NEY July 12, 1966 R. A. WOLFE 3,260,017

ELECTRICALLY ACTUATED TOY SPACE STATION HAVING LAMP MEANS Filed April 1'7, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3,260,017 ELECTRICALLY ACTUATED TOY SPACE STATION HAVING LAMP MEANS Robert A. Wolfe, 455 Elizabeth Ave., Newark, NJ. Filed Apr. 17, 1964, Ser. No. 360,712 3 Claims. (Cl. 46-226) The present invention relates to toys.

In particular the present invention relates to a toy which simulates a space station.

One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a toy which will not only simulate a space station by the appearance of the toy but which also can be controlled by the operator to carry out operations simulating those which might be carried out by a space station.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a toy of the above type which is relatively simple and inexpensive while at the same time being quite rugged.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a toy space station which enables the operator of the toy to control the space station remotely.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a toy space station which enables the operator to remotely control the toy in such a way as to regulate the elevation of the space station simulating part of the toy.

Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a structure which will permit an operator situated distant from the toy space station to control the operation of elements such as lamps which are carried by the toy.-

It is furthermore an object of the present invention to provide a toy of the above type which is rendered extremely simple and inexpensive by constructing it in such a way that parts of the toy will perform both electrical and mechanical functions.

According to a primary feature of the present invention the toy space station includes a flexible gas-tight container which is adapted to be filled with a gas which is lighter than air and which when filled with such gas on the one hand simulates the appearance of a space station and on the other hand tends to rise. Thiscontainer, according to a further feature of the invention, can carry an element such as a lamp, and in accordance with the present invention a remote control means is operatively connected to the container as well as to the lamp for controlling the elevation of the container and for controlling the illumination of the lamp.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings which form part of the application and in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective illustration of the toy of the invention, in accordance with one possible embodiment thereof;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view on an enlarged scale of the space station simulating container of the invention, parts of the container being broken away in FIG. 2 so as to illustrate more clearly the details of the structure; and

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating the wiring and components Which are included in a hold-down unit and a control unit which form part of the structure of the invention.

Referring now to FIG. 1, it will be seen that the toy space station of the invention includes a flexible, gas-tight container means A which is adapted to be filled in a manner described below with a gas which is lighter than air and which when thus filled has a fanciful configuration simulating the appearance of a space station and tends to rise. Situated beneath the container means A is a holddown unit B which carries in its interior various components of the invention described below in connection with FIG. 3, and these components give the hold-down unit B a weight which is great enough to prevent it from being raised by the upward pull which is exerted by the container means A. Elongated flexible members 20 connect the container means A to the hold-down unit B, and these flexible members 20 are actually, in accordance with one of the features of the invention, in the form of electrical wiring, and additional electrical wiring connects the holddown unit B to a control unit C which is remote from the container means A and which carries a pair of switch means which are adapted to be operated by the operator for producing various operations as described below.

The container means A is made up of a sheet material 10 (FIG. 2) which can be any suitable flexible gas-tight plastic such as polyethylene, for example, although any other one of many available plastic sheet materials will also serve the purpose. The configuration of the flexible gas-tight sheet material 10 is such that it forms a container which in structure is similar to a hollow pillow which may be filled with gas, although it is clear from FIG. 1 that the fanciful configuration given to the container means A by the sheet material 10 departs from what may be considered suitable for a pillow. It is only similar to a pillow in that it forms a hollow gas-tight enclosure which is adapted to be filled with a gas and when thus filled will expand to form a container having a configuration as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. This is a purely fanciful configuration having, for example, six corners, as shown, and simulating the appearance of a space station. At some of the corners 12, which are of substantially pointed configuration, lamps 14 are connected to the container means A, these lamps 14 being located in a gas-tight manner in suitable sockets which are fluid-tightly fixed to the sheet material 10 so that the lamps 14 can be placed into and removed from the sockets which have such construction that gas cannot escape therethrough.

In addition the container carries at an upper part an elongated tubular member 16 which may be a rigid tube fixed at its lower end fluid-tightly to the sheet material 10 or which may be a tubular sheet material similar to the sheet material 10 and also fluid-tightly joined thereto so that when the container is filled with gas the tubular member 16 will expand to the configuration shown in FIG. 2. Situated at the upper end of the tubular member 16 is a lamp 18 also located in a suitable gas-tight socket which is fluid-tightly joined to the upper end of the tubular member 16. Electrical wiring 20 extends in a fluid-tight manner through a suitable fitting 22, which is fluid-tightly fixed to the lower portion of the container, into the interior thereof, and it is apparent from FIG. 2 that the wiring 20 connects the lamps 14 and 18 to each other in series. The wiring 20 extends from the fitting 22 downwardly to the hold-down unit B and serves not only to connect the lamps into an electrical circuit but also to control the elevation of the container means A since the wiring 20 can function not only to conduct the electricity but also to form flexible cables.

The container means A carries at its sheet material 10 a well known valve assembly which permits gas to be introduced into the container but which prevents the escape of gas therefrom, and a pressurized can which contains a gas, such as helium under pressure, can he joined to this valve assembly for filling the container means A with a gas, such as helium, which is lighter than air. Once filled, the container means A will not only expand to the configuration indicated in FIGS. 1 and 2 but will also tend to rise. From time to time it may be necessary to introduce additional gas into the container means A.

Moreover, the container means A can carry at its exterior projecting portions which simulate various elements carried by a space station. Thus, the projecting portions 24 shown in FIG. 1 may simulate landing gear While the projecting portions 26 may simulate various type of antennae, or the like.

The wiring 20 is made up of a pair of flexible electrical conductors 20a and 26b, as indicated in FIG. 3, and this wiring extends through a suitable opening in the top wall of the box 27 as shown in FIG. 1 into the interior of this box. The box 27 may be any suitable container made of rigid walls and having any suitable removable cover so that access may be had to the interior of the box 27. The wiring 20 is freely movable through an opening in the top wall of the box 27 into and out of the latter, and in the interior of the box 27 there is supported for rotation, in any suitable bearings, a reel means 28 which is shown schematically in FIG. 3.

The reel means 28 includes a spindle 30 and a pair of flanges 32 and 34 fixed to the ends of the spindle 30, and these parts are made of metal so as to be electrically conductive. The conductor 20a is fixed directly to the spindle 30. The flange 34 of the reel means 28 carries an electrically conductive slip ring 36 which is insulated in any suitable way from the flange 34. The other conductor 29b is electrically connected with the slip ring 36 which is coaxial with the spindle 3t and turns together with the latter. Thus, during rotation of the reel means 28 in one direction or the other the wiring 20 will be reeled on to the reel means or paid out of the reel means, and the gas-filled container means A exerts a sutficient upward pull on the wiring 20 to move the wiring vertically as it is paid out of the reel means 28, While at the same time of course when the reel means 28 is turned in an opposite direction the wiring will simply be wound on to the reel means and will lower the container means A. Thus, the reel means 28 on one hand functions to provide electrical connections to the wiring 20 and on the other hand to act mechanically on the wiring 20, which is both mechanically and electrically connected to the container means A and the lamps carried thereby, respectively.

The electrical circuit includes a springy contact 38 fixed in any suitable way within the box 27 and resiliently pressing against the rotary slip ring 36, and the contact 38 is connected to an elongated flexible conductor 40 which forms part of the wiring 21 and which extends from the box 27 toward the control unit C. The control unit C includes also a hollow box 70 which may be made of any suitable rigid plastic or the like and which has any suitable removable cover which can give access to the interior of the box 70. The conductor 40 extends from the contact 38 to a manually operable switch means 42 having a manually operable switch member 48 which is accessible at the top of the box 70. This switch member 48 of the switch means 42 is movable between a pair of stationary contacts 44 and 46 and has an intermediate position between these contacts. The contacts 44 and 46 are both connected to the conductor 40 in the manner shown in FIG. 3 so that the circuit is the same irrespective of which of the contacts 44 or 46 is engaged by the switch member 48. The movable switch member of the switch means 42 is electrically connected with the battery 50 which is situated within the box 70 and which may be composed of any desired number of dry cell batteries, for example.

The batteries 50 are also connected by a conductor 52, Which forms part of the wiring 21, to a reversible electric motor 56 which is housed within the box 27 and which has its drive shaft fixed to the input gear of a step-down transmission 58 the output gear of which is connected with the spindle 30 of the reel means 28, so that in this way the drive from the reversible electric motor 56 is transmitted by the gear transmission 58 to the reel means 28. The outer box or container for the gear transmission 58 is in the form of a metal frame which has a conductor 60 connected thereto for the purpose of grounding this conductor, and it will be seen that in this way the conductor 2011, .by its connection with the spindle 30, is also grounded.

The ground wire 60 extends from the metal frame of the gear transmission 58 to the battery 50.

Accessible at the exterior of the box '70 is a second switch means 62. for controlling the operation of the motor 56-. This second switch means 62 has a manually operable switch member 68 accessible at the exterior of the box 70 and capable of being moved between a pair of positions where the switch member 68 will connect the conductor 54, which is electrically connected with the motor 56, either to the contact 64 or to the contact 66. It is apparent from FIG. 3 that when the switch member 68 engages the contact 66 the current will flow in one direction through the motor 56- so that this reversible motor will rotate in one direction to drive the reel 28 in one direction, while when the switch member 68 is placed by the operator in engagement of the contact 64 of the switch means 62 the current will flow in the reverse direction of the motor 56 so that the latter will turn in the opposite direction and will thus drive the reel means 28 in the opposite direction.

Moreover, it is apparent that when the switch means 42 is manipulated by the operator to place the movable switch member 48 thereof in engagement with either of the contacts 44 or 46 the circuit from the battery will be completed through the contact 38, the slip ring 36, and the conductor 20b to the several lamps which are connected in series through the conductor 20a back to the battery through the ground connection referred to above.

The operation of the toy of the invention is as follows:

Initially the operator will fill the container means A with a gas which is lighter than air, such as helium, in the manner described above, after having first placed the hold-down unit B on a suitable surface which may be the floor of a room. The weight of the components such as the motor 56, the gear transmission 58, and the reel means 28, together with the weight of the box 27 itself is suflicient to prevent the unit B from being lifted up by the gas-filled container A. When the container is filled with gas it will rise and exert an upward tension on the wiring 20 which is insuflicient to raise the hold-down unit B but which is great enough to cause the container means A to rise to an elevation determined by the length of the wiring 20 which has been paid out of the reel means 28 between the latter and the container means A. The remote control unit C can be placed at any desired location distant from the container-means A and the hold-down unit B, and for this purpose the wiring 21, made up of the conductors 40, 6t 52, and 54, is given a suflicient length to enable the operator to have a wide range of choice as to the distance of the control unit C from the hold-down unit B.

Assuming now that the operator wishes to increase the elevation of the container means A, then the operator will simply depress the switch member 68 shown in FIG. 1 in one direction or the other so as to connect it either to the contact 64 or to the contact 66. By practice the operator will know in which direction to turn the switch member so as to turn the reel means 28 in that direction which will pay wiring 20 out of the reel means 28 so that the container means will rise, and of course manipulation of the switch means 62 in the opposite direction will cause the reel means 28 to turn in a direction which will reel the elongated flexible member 20 on to the reel means, thus lowering the elevation of the container means A. The top face of the top wall of the container 70 can carry any suitable indicia at the opposite ends of the tiltable switch member 68 to indicate to the operator which direction will produce the raising of the container means A and which direction will produce a lowering of the container means A. Of course, when the toy is initially set up the wiring 20 may be wound on to the reel 28 to such an extent that the landing gear elements 24 will engage the same surface which is engaged by the holddown unit 27, so that the toy can be operated to simulate the lifting of the space station from a given surface, and

of course it can be operated in the reverse direction to land the space station.

The switch means 42 is available to the operator for controlling the illumination of the lamps 14 and 18. For this purpose the opera-tor can move the switch member 48 into engagement with the contact 46 to provide a steady illumination of the lamps. The movable switch member 48 can be held by any suitable releasable catch, detent or the like in an intermediate position between the contacts 44 and 46 so that the lamps will not be illuminated, and when released from such a catch, detent, or the like, the switch member 48 can be urged by .a suitable spring into engagement with the contact 46 to provide steady illumination of the lamps. With such an arrangement the operator'has the option of repeatedly moving the switch member 48, in opposition to the spring which urges it into engagement with the contact 46, into engagement with the contact 44 at a frequency determined by the rapidity with which the operator himself moves the switch member 48 up and down, so that in this way a flashing operation of the lamp can be achieved.

The container means A mayhave a one-way valve which enables it to be filled with gas which can be retained therein, or the construction can also be designed in such a way that when it is desired to put the toy away the gas can be released and the collapsed container means can then be located in a relatively small space with the hold-down unit B, the control unit C, and the wiring which extends between these elements, and then at any later time the container means A can be filled with gas so that the toy can again be operated in the manner described above.

What is claimed is:

1. A toy space station comprising gas-tight container means simulating the appearance of a space station, adapted to be filled with a gas which is lighter than air, and when filled with said gas, tending to rise, said container means carrying at least one lamp which is visible at the exterior of said container means, a hold-down unit adapted to be situated directly beneath said container means on a suitable surface, said hold-down unit carrying a rotary reel means and a reversible electric motor means operatively connected to said reel means for turning the latter in one direction or another, electrical wiring connected to said reel means to be reeled on to the same or paid out of the same depending upon the direction of rotation of said electrical motor means, said electrical wirin g being mechanically connected to said container means for controlling the elevation thereof, said hold-down unit being heavy enough to remain stationary on a given surface while said container means due to its tendency to rise pulls upwardly on said electrical wiring to become situated at an elevation controlled by said reel means, said electrical wiring also being electrically connected with said lamp, a control unit spaced from said hold-down unit and connected with the latter through additional electrical wiring which is electrically connected with said motor means and with the electrical wiring extending from said reel means to said container means and lamp, and a pair of switch means connected to said additional wiring, carried by said control unit, and accessible to the operator for controlling the operation of said motor and for controlling the operation of said lamp, respectively.

2. A toy space station according to claim 1, wherein said container means carries at its exterior, projecting portions which project from said container means and simulate landing gear, antennae, or the like.

3. A top space station according to claim 1, wherein said electrical wiring includes a pair of flexible wires, one of which is electrically connected with said reel means, said reel means carrying a slip-ring insulated from said reel means and electrically connected with the other of said wires, so that during rotation said reel means both of the wires will be reeled on to or paid out of said reel means for controlling the elevation of said container means, and a contact engaging said slip-ring, sa-id contact being connected with said switch means into a circuit which includes said reel means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,912,960 6/1933 Aki et al 46-226 2,805,349 9/ 1957 Friedman. 3,030,733 4/ 1962 Crawford 46-243 3,165,861 1/1965 StanZel 46228 FOREIGN PATENTS 991,656 6/1951 France.

993,042 7/1951 France. 1,346,427 11/ 1963 France.

OTHER REFERENCES Ragner, M. G.: American Modeler, April 1961, pages 14, 15, and 46 relied on.

RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner. L. J. BOVASSO, Assistam Examiner. 

1. A TOY SPACE STATION COMPRSING GAS-TIGHT CONTAINER MEANS SIMULATING THE APPEARACE OF A SPACE STATION, ADAPTED TO BE FILLED WITH A GAS WHICH IS LIGHTER THAN AIR, AND WHEN FILLED WITH SAID GAS, TENDING TO RISE, SAID CONTAINER MEANS CARRYING AT LEAST ONE LAMP WHICH IS VISIBLE AT THE EXTERIOR OF SAID CONTAINER MEANS, A HOLD-DOWN UNIT ADAPTED TO BE SITUATED DIRECTLY BENEATH SAID CONTAINER MEANS ON A SUITABLE SURFACE, SAID HOLD-DOWN UNIT CARRYING A ROTARY REEL MEANS AND A REVERSIBLE ELECTRIC MOTOR MEANS OPERATIVELY CONNECTED TO SAID REEL MEANS FOR TURNING THE LATTER IN ONE DIRECTION OR ANOTHER, ELECTRICAL WIRING CONNECTED TO SAID REEL MEANS TO BE REELED ON TO THE SAME OR PAID OUT OF THE SAME DEPENDING UPON THE DIRECTION OF ROTATION OF SAID ELECTRICAL MOTOR MEANS, SAID ELECTRICAL WIRING BEING MECHANICALLY CONNECTED TO SAID CONTAINER MEANS FOR CONTROLLING THE ELEVATION THEREOF, SAID HOLD-DOWN UNIT BEING HEAVY ENOUGH TO REMAIN STATIONARY ON A GIVEN SUR- 